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Modding Skyrim

Went back to Skyrim for the first time since release. I've installed a bunch of mods but there's still a few issues annoying me that I haven't been able to find a mod for.

1. Distant terrain. I'm using some ini tweaks and a small mod to make the change between close and distant LOD less severe. But I remember having a mod for Oblivion that made the distant terrain look more natural and less bare with new textures. Is there something similar for Skyrim?

2. NPC enchanters. I have a mod that allows me to pay NPCs for smithing services, I really want one for enchanting too but I can't find anything.

3. Biggest one, rebalanced enemy scaling. It's much better than vanilla Oblivion, but it still annoys me that I can kill imperial soldiers at level 3 as easily as I can a bandit on the road, but in 10 levels time if I haven't advanced my weapon and armour skills enough those same enemies will be much tougher. Also the way wolves seem to die out in favour of bears, etc. I've seen a couple of mods that claim to stop scaling, but they're light on details of the actual changes they make and I'm reluctant to install something that could potentially ruin the game.

I've been looking for a decent distance terrain mod for a while. Ever since I crested a hill and saw a lumpy mass of brown ground where Whiterun should be. Something is acting up when I can see floating ghost windows but no buildings.

Requiem is an old skool mod that eliminates npc level scaling. It really adds to the rpg-ness, good stuff if you're not into the God-Who-Walks-As-A-Man stuff of AAA games. If you choose Requiem, be forewarned that it does not have fast travel. Some people are put off by that, I love it as it gave me a chance to ride my horse. :-)

Or you could use SkyRe which you can tweak more easily. SkyRe keeps more of the flavor of the original Skyrim, and isn't so concerned with maximizing the rpg elements of the game. But there is a better leveled NPC system.

I'd recommend using the STEP as a starting point. http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/11 Just a warning though, I had to buy 2X680 classifieds just run the game with maxed gfx. Dont touch ugrids though unless you like the tension of random CTDs.

Requiem and SkyRe look interesting but I was really hoping for something less far-reaching. I've still only seen a relatively small part of the game so I think I'll keep it closer to vanilla for now, but I'll remember them for future plays. I'll have a proper read through STEP tomorrow, I like that approach more than bundling everything in an all-or-nothing package.

Requiem and SkyRe look interesting but I was really hoping for something less far-reaching. I've still only seen a relatively small part of the game so I think I'll keep it closer to vanilla for now, but I'll remember them for future plays. I'll have a proper read through STEP tomorrow, I like that approach more than bundling everything in an all-or-nothing package.

Definitely wait to use one of those two then. STEP is a great way to enhance vanialla without have to spend a lot of time testing mods etc yourself. Just don't touch ugrids and use NMM, it will save a lot of headaches.

I liked Economics of Skyrim up until the point where it began to require 3rd party software. I understood the need for OBSE in Oblivion and used it a ton. With that limited tool kit a script extended was required for anything at all interesting to happen.

Skyrim has a much more robust tool set available, and I have found that 99% of what I want to add to my game does not require hacking the exe file. Its simply not worth the risk to my game to add the need for such a tool for a single mod.

Thanks for posting that link, though. I appreciate it. Had the mod not gone SKSE I would still use it.

I was wondering if someone knows of a Skyrim mod that disables the free/built-in health regeneration. Unless I have an item that replenishes health or I'm using a potion/chomping on raw rabbit haunches, I don't want my health to come back. The Workshop makes searching easier, but it's congested and I'm at work. Magicka and Stamina are fine as they are.

Anyone know if any mod added in something akin to the Sigil Stones of Oblivion? For those unaware: They were items that you could use to enchant a weapon with a pre-made enchantment. Sort of like gems and what nots in most ARPGs.

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well there is a sigil stone underneath the college at winterhold. there's no mod that i'm aware of but there might be something along those lines in the big overhauls that i haven't paid much attention to (skyre et al.). this is the coolest standalone enchantment mod i've come across: http://skyrim.nexusmods.com/mods/26253 (nothing close to what you're looking for though)

Actually the idea that you can just throw away mods you don't want in Skyrim is a myth. Sure its true for some mods. Those which do not alter spells, perks or abilities are pretty safe, or so I have seen so far.

But mods which alter things that directly affect the player are not so safe. Skyrim stores much more information in your save games than previous Bethesda games did. Worse still, if you load a mod, it has then affected ALL of your save games, not just the one or two saves you made using that mod. Strange, but true.

BEfore using mods that alter anything directly affecting the player, make sure you want them. Once loaded, you're stuck with them. Change perks, and then uninstall the mod that did it, and you probably lose your save games.

Secondly...many people will talk about merged/bashed patches. About how they "make mods work together."

They don't.

Sure they can place items from multiple mods on the same leveled list and make sure you get all the items in your game. But if two mods alter the same spell, NPC, perk or ability, Merged/Bashed patches won't help you. Neither will Mod Manager.

As always, the best policy for modding Skyrim remains: If two mods change the same thing, only use one of them. This limits your load order, but also helps protect the stability of your game and the integrity of your save games.